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Kick starting the academic year with Erasmus Mundus TECHNO and TECHNO II partneships

Featured

The start of the academic year has seen the Schools of Applied Sciences and Design, Engineering and Computing welcoming 4 new Erasmus Mundus students through the TECHNO 2 (Erasmus Mundus Partnership). Specifically, these include 3 fully funded MSc students and 1 BSc exchange students (6 month).

Last year, the School of Applied Sciences has welcomed one post-doc exchange, 2 teaching staff exchanges and 1 MPhil student TECHNO.  By December 31st, 2013 both schools will welcome an additional 2 teaching staff; 1 post-doc exchange and 1 PhD exchange.

Both TECHNO and TECHNO II projects are partnerships of the Erasmus Mundus programme of the European Union, and they are collectively funded with approximately 4 million euro. All participants receive a monthly allowance and full cover of their travel expenses and medical insurance. The person in charge of TECHNO and TECHNO II at BU is Dr Demetra Andreou; a Lecture in Environmental Science at the School of Applied Sciences and is currently supported by Dr Emilie Hardouin (maternity cover for Dr Andreou) and Mrs Heather Cashin (Senior Programme Administrator at Applied Sciences).

The second call of the TECHNO II project will take place before the end of this year. All the information about the TECHNO projects can be found at http://www.techno-em.org/ and http://www.techno2-em.org/

 

 

 

 

The TECHNO team with our current participants (Left to right: Dr Demetra Andreou, Dr Emilie Hardouin, Yating Ru, Phuong Nguyen,  Quyen Tran, Yankun Zhao, Qianqian Wei and Heather Cashin.

 

Open Call for International Evaluators in all Scientific Areas!

EU

The Ministry of Science, Education and Sports of the Republic of Croatia (MSES) are seeking international experts in all scientific areas to evaluate project proposals under NEWFELPRO project to individually, remotely review project proposals covering a wide range of studies in their specific disciplines.

 This is a fantasic opportunity not only to gain reviewing experiencing but also to meet potential collaborators! To apply, send your CV to newfelpro@mzos.hr with “Evaluator application” in the subject line of the email message. The deadline to apply is 18 September 2013.

Have your say on the EU

EU, Research news

BIS have asked BU to participate in a consultation focussing around the EU’s competences.  This is an opportunity for us to provide evidence to an informed and objective analysis.

If you would like to contribute to this consultation then the questions to be addressed, and more information about the consultation, can be found here: Balance of Competences Research and Development

Please send your response to the questions to Jo Garrad by c.o.p. 19th July.  In order to help me combine the institutional response, please clearly identify which questions you are addressing.

Many thanks for your cooperation and vital input.

Fusion supports Euro PR History Network advance

BU research, EU, Uncategorized

Delegates to the EPRHN Planning Meeting

With financial support from the Fusion Investment Fund, the European Public Relations History Network (EPRHN) held its first planning meeting at BU on Wednesday June 26.

The network was founded virtually in 2012 by Prof Tom Watson of the Media School and drew interest from 33 academics and practitioners in 11 European countries. It was approved.as a project by EUPRERA (Europe’s PR education and research association) in autumn last year.

Its aims are to develop and produce information about the history and historiography of public relations in Europe through the identification and formation of archives, transnational research, joint research bids and the production of publications in print and online formats.

The meeting of EPRHN’s core group brought seven historical researchers from Germany, Romania, Spain, Scotland, Turkey and Bournemouth. Fusion assisted their attendance through travel bursaries.

Among the actions to be progressed are a bid to the EU’s COST (Cooperation in Science and Technology) scheme, which was facilitated on Wednesday by Paul Lynch of RKE; a second edition of its Archives Record publication; and a panel session on ‘developing the history of European public relations’ at EUPRERA’s annual conference in October.

Prof Watson, who was supported by Dr Tasos Theofilou in the organisation of the meeting, said it had been highly productive. “There’s a limit to what we can achieve by email and Skype. The EPRHN made a big forward step because FIF helped bring key members together”. It will also assist Prof Watson and Dr Theofilou to fully launch the group at the October conference.

“At present, 13 countries are represented in the network. We hope to widen that base and engage many more historical researchers in its activities”, said Prof Watson.

For more information about EPRHN and BU’s contribution to the burgeoning field of PR history, go to: http://historyofpr.com.

Insight into what will be funded under ‘Health’ in Horizon 2020

EU

Focus of Funding – what’s different? : Europe 2020 marks out the goal to increase the number of healthy life years by 24 months by 2020 and Horizon 29020 funding will be geared towards this, focusing on health and quality of European citizens, the growth and expansion of EU industry in this area and long-term sustainability and efficiency in health and social care systems. The health focus   of Horizon 2020 will therefore be the challenge of an ageing population across Europe and in particular the health inequalities within this. Horizon 2020 will seek to transform the challenges into opportunities, focusing on active ageing, integrated care, large efficiency gains of new care modules and looks at the financial aspect that the health care market is worth €3000bn and has 85 million consumers which is ever increasing. Horizon 2020 marks a paradigm shift of ageing from a societal challenge to a major opportunity; from a burden to an asset; from acute reactive care to preventative, proactive care; and from a focus on curing diseases to improving functioning. There will be an increased focus on dissemination; not just discovering new ways to help people live longer, but getting this to ordinary EU citizens so they can begin to change their lifestyle. Involving end users will be key.

 

Types of funding: The main areas of funding are addressing major age-prevalent chronic diseases; innovation in integrated care delivery systems and innovation in independent living and social inclusion. The approach to health care will be focused on combining demand and supply sides of innovation; building on existing instruments and new ones where necessary; ownership of key stakeholder willing to invest; large-scale deployment and awareness and best-practice sharing across Europe.   It looks as though calls will be issued under 6 themes:

  • Better adherence to medical treatment
  • Prevention of falls
  • Prevention of functional decline and frailty
  • Integrated care models
  • Independent living and active ageing
  • Age-friendly buildings, cities and environments

 

How can I prepare – finding Partners: The European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing is the first attempt to bring together interested parties from public and private sectors to deliver innovative solutions for an ageing society. The EIP website is currently being revamped, but this is a key time to sell your research expertise to others through this virtual marketplace. Advertising your areas of knowledge and skills can help you gain partners to submit for calls under Horizon 2020.

 

Fund an EU meeting with COST

EU

COST  funds pan-European, bottom-up networks of scientists and researchers across all science and technology fields. These networks, called ‘COST Actions’, promote international coordination of nationally-funded research, but mot the research itself. Proposals for actions are now open and those which play a precursor role for other European programmes and/or initiated by early-stage researchers are favoured.
COST is organised in nine broad domains (Biomedicine and Molecular Biosciences; Chemistry and Molecular Sciences and Technologies; Earth System Science and Environmental Management; Food and Agriculture; Forests, their Products and Services; Individuals, Societies, Cultures and Health; Information and Communi­ation Technologies; Materials, Physics and Nanosciences; Transport and Urban Development). To make a submission, you must have a minimum of five EU countries involved and you should choose one domain where possible or if it is truly interdisciplinary then there is a possibility of a trans-domain proposal application.  All info on the current call can be found here.

ELOs and Sponsors

 

Researching ICT? This EU conference could be VERY beneficial for you

EU

More than 4000 researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs, industry representatives, young people and politicians are expected to attend ICT 2013 in November.The event will focus on Horizon 2020 and includes conference presentations, networking sessions, investment forums. This is a key way to gather more info on what to expect under ICT Horizon 2020 calls and to network and gain a collaborative group. You can register for the event here.

BU EU template wording available

EU

I’m often told that generic BU and School information would be helpful when drafting EU proposals. I am pleased to inform you that some generic and School specific information is now available on our I drive which we hope will be useful as a starting place for you I:\R&KEO\Public\RDU\European Related\General Templates

European Science Foundation and Global Changes in the Marine Environment

BU research, EU, Featured, Featured academics, Funding opportunities, R & KE Operations, Research news, Uncategorized

I was very proud to have been invited by the Institute of Marine Sciences – National Research Council (ISMAR-CNR) in Venice who developed on the European Science Foundation Platform, the Exploratory Workshop:  Marine woodborers: New Frontiers for European Waters. And I have to say that that was one of the most exciting research opportunities I have taken part of in the recent past.

The European Science Foundation (ESF) was established in 1974 to provide a common platform for its Member Organisations to advance European research collaboration and explore new directions for research. Currently it is an independent organisation, owned by 67 Member Organisations, which are research funding organisations, research performing organisations and academies from 29 countries.

The focus of the Exploratory Workshops scheme is on workshops aiming to explore an emerging and/or innovative field of research or research infrastructure, also of interdisciplinary character. Workshops are expected to open up new directions in research or new domains. It is expected that a workshop shall conclude with plans for follow-up research activities and/or collaborative actions or other specific outputs at international level.

The organisers, namely Davide Tagliapietra, Erica Keppel and Marco Sigovini – all from the ISMAR-CNR- did an amazing job in organising this much needed research group and by planning an excellent working programme.

The topic, centred on Marine woodborers is of utmost important as these organisms are a threat to maritime structure and archaeological heritage. Recently, an increase in attack and a northward spread has been reported. Despite the ecological, economical and cultural importance, research on this subject is carried out by few scientists scattered across Europe. An interdisciplinary approach is needed to reach a synthesis of knowledge and a deeper understanding of the causal factors. The main outcome of the workshop is the establishment of a research network aiming to coordinate scientists with an European perspective and a global view. Through the establishment of such a network, new theoretical and technical developments could be achieved.

The agenda of the workshop was to focus on:

1) bringing together experts in complementary fields that have hitherto not collaborated as a group;

2) identifying additional research competences that are not covered within the group of participants;

3) identifying, exchanging and sharing research interests for future joint leading research projects and developing an application strategies;

4) the establishment of an international network on marine woodborers.

Despite the subject ([wood-]‘boring’ organisms), there wasn’t a single dull moment. It was very exciting to spent a considerable amount of time with international peers coming from as far as Colombia and discussing the problems surrounding these particular organisms.

All sessions were extremely interesting and productive and I totally enjoyed chairing one of them in the Knowledge Café, with my hat of maritime archaeologist whose research interest based also based on marine organisms and global changes, but I am also one of few who combines degradation and protection of the cultural heritage and marine science. The Knowledge Café focussed on Systematics and biogeography, Marine woodborer-microorganism interactions, Protection of shipwrecks and maritime structures. Each group discussed weaknesses: Problems, constrains and bottlenecks, Strengths: Opportunities, synergies, and Perspectives: Solutions, actions and recommendations.

19 international peers attended, which was by invitation only, this amazing opportunity, some of which were old friends and some of which have become reference points for my current and future research on wood borers.

All with the amazing architectural beauties of a tiny Venetian island just in front of one of the world most famous squares: San Marco square!

Paola Palma 

Reminder – Marie Curie morning session 16/04/13 – Need a Fully Funded Research Fellow ??

EU, Funding opportunities, Grants Academy, Research news, Training

 

The Prize

These schemes provide strong financial support for a Research Fellow in your department for a period of 12 – 24 months on any research topic.

The Catch

The Research Fellow must come from another European Country or International Base worldwide. It is joint application with you and the fellowship candidate – so they must be identified. (If the fellow is already in the UK they must have been working here for less than 1 year in the last 3.)

The Deadline

Deadline for application is August 2013 – but the forms are relatively easy & straight forward – although moderately time consuming. Fellowships will start in early 2014 but this start date could be extended to early 2015.

Intra-European Fellowships (IEF)                  Deadline  Mid August 2013

International Incoming Fellowships (IIF)       Deadline  Mid August 2013

Note: For people already at the University there is a similar outgoing international Fellowship scheme to enable research periods in other , non European, Labs and Research Centres.

These fellowships are prestigious and highly sought after, especially as they pay very well. There is a difference in emphasis between the two schemes but the overriding criteria is candidate, and host, excellence with respect to the justification of the project rationale. This is all derived from the candidates cv and thus please discuss initially with Martin Pickard who can advise on suitability and fit.

These fellowships are an excellent, and often overlooked, way to expand and compliment a research team. Initial advice is imperative as, again, project structure and rationale with respect to the candidate are very important in determining success and need to be argued and justified around the actual science and project.

Requirements.

One University (Host) and one applicant, of any nationality, other than from than the UK. (candidates may already be in the UK but must have spent less than 12 months of the past 36 in the UK)

The higher the quality of the cv, rated against age and experience, the more likelihood of funding success. Each prospective fellow can only apply for one fellowship but any host can have as many fellows as they want applying to work with the same PI.

The Grant

Typical project period – Minimum 12 months — Maximum 24 months

Fellow income: In excess of 80,000 Euro per year.

University Income: Minimum of 18,000 Euro per year.

Help Needed ??

If you have a research Fellow in Mind (or can find one through networking or your colleague links) the application will not take a lot of time – but a clearly defined and specific approach is required. Guidance notes will be available as well as direct one to one support from our proposal writing specialist Dr. Martin Pickard. 

To assist further we have also arranged a series of 2 morning information sessions. The next one and last one is due to be held on the Tuesday 16th of April 2013 – Lansdowne Campus

Information Session 1 –  09:00am – 10:00am

A Brief Introduction to the Marie Curie Fellowship Schemes – for those of general interest.  

In addition to the general European topic specific calls under the cooperation programme there are a number of explicit opportunities arising through other schemes – some of which are far more easily accessible and have the advantage of being open to literally any research idea/topic. Several of these arise through the People programme under the Marie Curie calls and this 40 minute plus Q&A information session seeks to highlight some of these opportunities and identify their pro’s and cons so that a clear strategy can be developed to avoid missing these significant, and relatively easy, opportunities.

Information Session 2 – 10:15am – 12:15pm

How to Approach and Structure your Marie Curie Fellowship Application –  for those possibly intending to submit a bid.

The structure of any bid (partner interactions, methodology synergy etc.) is critical to the success of an application and forward planning is a key element of winning proposals.

If you are thinking of applying this August this session will illustrate the basic approach requirements for success and show how to structure and present your research application in the correct form of “Brusselese”.  A brief, 2 hour, guide to the Marie Curie application process.

Please note: If you are already intending to submit a bid this August then Session 1 will provide very little additional information. Also Grants Academy members who have already attended our Grants Academy 2 Day Bid Writing Workshop will not need to attend Session 1 as this has already been covered in your workshop so we would recommend you book into and attend Session 2 only.

If these are a potential interest to you – don’t miss this exceptional opportunity. Please book in ASAP via Staff Development Booking Link to reserve your space as we anticipate these sessions will be very popular.

Erasmus Mundus mobility to South Caucasus region and Ukraine for students and staff available now! -Deadline 28th February-

EU, Funding opportunities, PG research, Training

BU students and staff have been invited by Georg-August Universität Göttingen to apply for mobility at ALRAKIS II.

ALRAKIS II is one of the awarded Erasmus Mundus action 2 projects that promotes exchange mobility in the South Caucasus region and Ukraine. The beneficiary countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Ukraine. Our students and staff would be looking at applying at Target Group 2.

For more information please visit the project website and if you have any queries please contact Eva Papadopoulou at epapadopoulou@bournemouth.ac.uk and 01202 968252

Please note that the deadline for this is 28th February 2013.

Euro PR history network backed by Fusion

Awarded & submitted bids, BU research, EU, Featured academics, Fusion, Uncategorized

IHPRC at EBC - Scene for first EPRHN meeting

A proposal to develop an innovative Europe-wide network of researchers in the history of public relations field has been supported by the Fusion Investment Fund (FIF).

The European Public Relations History Network (EPRHN) was formed in mid-2012 by Prof Tom Watson and backed by EUPRERA (European Public Relations Education & Research Association) as a priority project for the next three years. It was set up to identify archives and resources, undertake collaborative research, and prepare bids to European research bodies and PR industry organisations.

The field of public relations history has been developed at BU over the past four years, mainly through the establishment of the International History of Public Relations Conference (IHPRC).

Prof Watson said: “there has been increasing interest in the conference and PR historical research in Europe over the past 3-4 years but it has largely focused on national histories, personalities or phenomena. Collaborative research, across national boundaries, has yet to emerge. There is little shared knowledge of archival resources, where they exist or can be created.”

So far, 35 academics and practitioners from 12 countries have shown their interest in EPRHN. Its first publication, a catalogue of archives and resources in seven countries has just been published.  A EPRHN planning meeting will be held at BU after IHPRC in June.

Within The Media School, the network will also help develop European aspects of the Centre for Media History (CMH). CMH is already developing relationships with universities in Sweden and northern Germany. CMH and EPRHN will, it is hoped, foster the recruitment of PGR students interested in media and communication historical research.

The Fusion funding will allow EPRHN to hold a planning event at BU after IHPRC in late June and for Prof Watson and Dr Tasos Theofilou, who is working with him on both PR history projects, to attend EUPRERA’s annual conference in Barcelona in October. At EUPRERA, they will hold the network’s first formal meeting and workshop. [Photos by Minna-Liisa Nurmilaasko, PROCOM Finland].

IHPRC 2012

Erasmus Mundus Call Open – INTERESTED?

EU, Funding opportunities

 

The Erasmus Mundus 2013 call for proposals is now open!  Full details of the call can be found here and please note that this year’s call is for Action 2 and 3 proposals only.

We need to assess the level of interest across BU in submitting applications to this call in order to ensure we meet the guidelines re multiple applications.

If interested in applying, please contact Paul Lynch asap! –  plynch@bournemouth.ac.uk

UK Research Office (UKRO) visit to BU on 27th November 2012

BU research, EU, Funding opportunities, Guidance, R & KE Operations, Research news, Research themes

BU welcomed Jo Frost, BU’s named contact for the UK Research Office (UKRO). Jo’s presentation was wide-ranging and hugely informative, outlining the current FP7 scheme and the forthcoming Horizon 2020 scheme, which is still going through the consultation process. It is expected that Horizon 2020 will focus on three priorities: ‘Excellent Science’, ‘Industrial Leadership’ and ‘Societal Challenges’. Jo also introduced the new Erasmus for All scheme.

All the slides from the day are available to BU staff only. These slides include many links to useful sources of information, if you would like to take part in the Horizon 2020 consultation or are planning ahead and want to prepare a submission to the many funding streams within this framework. Jo stressed the need to build networks and many suggestions are included in her presentation. These slides also give detailed information on the proposed budget allocations and themes within the three priority areas.

If you would like to enhance your knowledge of changes to EU funding, please refer to Jo’s slides. You can also contact Corrina Dickson, Paul Lynch, Sarah Katon or Emily Cieciura, who can help you develop your EU submissions.

BU staff can view the slides at: I:\R&KEO\Public\RDU\European Related\UKRO 2012 Presentation.

New publication on EU innovation which may help you shape your EU proposal impact section

EU

Innovation Landscapes explores the approaches to innovation in the UK, Germany and Finland. The document collects, describes, analyses and compares the national innovation schemes and policies of these countries in order to detect similarities, links or divergences between national and European innovation policies, measures and instruments. 

The document will be used to  inform future initiatives at the EU level but is really relevant for any of you developing the impact section of your EU proposals.

Work in labs? Got links in Africa? Then this will be good news for you!

EU

A £15.3 million (US$24 million) fund to build links between African research laboratories and strengthen their research capacity through mentoring has been launched by the Royal Society (the UK’s science academy) and the UK Department for International Development (DFID). The aim is to provide equipment and training for African scientists, and to establish researcher exchange programmes between the United Kingdom and Sub-Saharan Africa. Start-up grants of up to US$39,000 will assist the formation of research consortia, and larger grants of almost US$2 million will then support specific research programmes over a five-year period. To qualify for the larger grants, projects must involve a consortium of one UK laboratory and three African laboratories. Calls for proposals will be launched in November, but keep an eye on the DFID website for more announcements.

FI- WARE are looking for additional partners

EU

FI-WARE, the core platform of the future internet, invites proposals through the Directorate-General for Information Society and Media for its open call for additional partners. FI-WARE has reserved a portion of its budget to fund specific tasks carried out by a new beneficiary or beneficiaries, who will join the consortium after starting the project. Topics for this call are:

•advanced web-based user interface generic enablers, for which funding is worth up to €2.75 million;

•steam-oriented GEs, for which funding is worth up to €2.25m;

•cloud proxy extended development and management platform GE, for which funding is worth up to €1m.

The deadline is 07.11.12; to find out more info check out the FI-WARE webpage.

Work in Social Sciences? Have contacts in India and the EU? Then this could be for you!

EU

The first awards under the India-Europe research grants scheme for the social sciences have been made.

The Open Research Area (ORA) scheme is a multi-funded (including the ESRC) EU focused programme which supports collaborations between researchers in India and Europe. This year, the three-year research projects will each include an Indian partner alongside researchers from UK, French, German or the Netherlands. They will study areas such as ageing and wellbeing, the global accessibility of medicine and the cultural authority of science. You can read about the funded projects on the DFG (German funders) website.

The funding scheme is designed to provide top-up resources to established working groups, to enhance collaborative efforts as part of a cross-continent social sciences network. A new call for proposals will be launched in September and close in January 2013.